The Red Explosion

* Korean
* English

## Synopsis

The players of Running Man look for ways to stand up against the conspiracy behind the championship. Plus, when Liu finally meets his sister, he is extremely shocked and distressed.

## Plot

The episode begins with the Running Men inside their dorms, with Popo, Lonky, and Pala expressing their exhaustion while Kuga and Miyo remind them about the upcoming game, warning them about the DV7's capabilities. Miyo mentions that they need a plan and Pala agrees but mentions Liu, who is sitting away from the group, reminiscing about his sister as the group sympathetically watches.

A flashback scene appears with Liu and Shan during their younger years, inside Shan's laboratory back in their home tribe. Shan is seen creating 'Mr. Suitcase', with Liu watching in excitement as her invention comes to life and excitedly watching when Shan orders Mr. Suitcase, asking for her drill gun. Mr. Suitcase, confused with her command, stands still, confusing Shan. She repeats her command, with Liu watching in anticipation but Mr. Suitcase continues not to do anything. Frustrated, Shan grabs Mr. Suitcase and starts shaking him around, causing it to jump out of her hands and land on the desk, walking side-to-side dizzy. Shan and Liu watch as Mr. Suitcase vomits out the drill-gun and looks up at them, tilting its head. Shan, already frustrated with it, glares at Mr. Suitcase, scaring the contraption into jumping into Liu's arms, cuddling him. Shan watches as Liu happily cuddles with Mr. Suitcase and the flashback ends.

We go back to present times, where Liu continues reminiscing and is interrupted by the Running Men, who awkwardly confess how they need Liu to give them a plan. Lonky, unaware of his insensitivity, comments about how Liu's moping isn't in character of him before getting grabbed by the neck by Kuga and thrown back into the couch.

Pala attempts small talk and asks Liu if his sister is part of the DV7, commenting about how unexpected it was. Receiving no response, Pala questions Liu once more, asking how his sister could've possibly been a DV7 if he said that she had died. Liu, still grieving over her 'death', looks away in pain, and Pala gets thrown to the back as well by Kuga for being innocently insensitive. Liu confesses that his sister *did* die, at least, on that day. He begins to recount what happened.

Another flashback scene appears, this time with the laboratory being filled with red smoke as Liu charges in, trying to find Shan. Despite the smoke blocking his view, he trudges on, his foot bumping into Mr. Suitcase, who struggles to stay alive through the red smoke. Alarmed, Liu picks Mr. Suitcase up and asks it where Shan is. He panics when Mr. Suitcase suddenly turns off due to the smoke, looking around desperately and shouting her name as the flashback ends. At a loss for words, the Running Men look at Liu in horror once he finishes his story. Liu, upset, quietly stands up and starts to leave the lobby, going back to his room without a word as the Running Men watch him with sympathetic looks on their faces.

The scene changes into a laboratory, with Charming Gold walking around the area, demanding an answer from Dr. Mala about the events of the previous games. Dr. Mala reluctantly admits that he doesn't have a concrete answer but theorizes that the reason for their loss is because of Liu. Charming Gold turns around to face him, unsatisfied with his answer as Dr. Mala looks back in fear.

We're sent back to the lobby, where the Running Men are gathered. Popo worries for Liu, telling the others about how he shouldn't be alone in his grief while Lonky disagrees, insensitively commenting about how Liu is just in a bad mood before biting his tongue when he sees Kuga glaring at him, where he changes his way of phrasing by saying that it's best to leave people alone when they're grieving. Pala agrees, recalling Liu's story and mentioning how devastating an experience like that could bring.

Gai offhandedly recalls the 'Red Gas' Liu mentioned in his story and tells the others about his own experience, telling them about a 'Red Gas' he saw when Charming Gold brainwashed him. Miyo, with the information given, starts to theorize how Liu's sister, as well as the rest of the DV7, could also be brainwashed, with Kuga confirming it by mentioning the 'Red-Eyed Monster', whom he reveals to have found him out as 'Master Makkhan'. Lonky cuts in, playfully reminding Kuga about what happened during the very first game, to his annoyance as he glares at him.

Miyo wonders if Liu's Sister and Makkhan are victims of the same red gas that brainwashed Gai while Kuga admits that he is unsure as well, recounting the story of Makkhan.

According to Kuga, Master Makkhan was the greatest warrior in his tribe but due to his conflicting views with the elders, he was exiled from the land and lived in the forest, honing his skills. One day, an explosion occurred in the forest and that was the last instance anyone has ever heard of him, with a cloud of red smoke and an imprint of his paw on the side of a mountain.

Gai starts piecing the information together, confirming that the 'Kuga Man' is Master Makkhan while Miyo makes a realization about how Liu's sister, being the Bug Tribe's greatest inventor and Makkhan, being the Bars Tribe's greatest warrior, were brainwashed against their will and are unable to get out of it and that since Charming Gold is in charge of the games, he's using the DV7 to make them lose so he can gain full control of the Soul Tree.

The Running Men grow silent, taking the epiphany in, and Lonky, determined, tells the others that they need a plan to stop Charming Gold. Pala whines, scratching his neck as he wishes for Liu to arrive and help them create one. When they all seem to be at a loss, Popo chimes in, suggesting a plan and intriguing the others.

The scene changes to a shot of Liu's room, with Liu lying dejectedly on his bed. Suddenly, his door opens and the Running Men enter, Kuga and Lonky arguing on the way in. Kuga suggests they charge in and attack while Lonky argues back that his plan is stupid, insulting him in the process, Kuga, annoyed, grabs Lonky by the neck and demands that he make a plan instead. Miyo appears behind Liu, reassuring him that they'll come up with something. The arguing ensues as Liu tries to ignore them. Gai offers to become Man-X again to trick Charming Gold but Popo reassures all of them that, with his magical cards, he'll be able to wipe the DV7 out easily. Miyo dismisses him, calling his powers 'silly card games' and Popo, angered, replies by making fun of Miyo's psychometry. The two argue with each other as Gai watches in disapproval. Disheartened, Pala walks away and Gai grabs him by the collar, asking him where he's going. Pala tells Gai he's leaving the competition, having given up on the games already but Gai refuses to let him go, arguing that they need him to defeat the DV7.

Chaos ensues as the Running Men continue arguing with each other, causing Liu to snap. He sits up from his bed and yells at the Running Men, shocking them. Leaving them no time to explain, Liu stands up from his bed and scolds the Running Men for their hostility, reminding them about the true reason for the Running Man Championship. As Liu pauses, Miyo comments how he's back to his old self. Liu agrees, unaware of their plan but immediately realizes what she meant. He looks back at the Running Men, who smile at him. Liu sighs, shaking his head at his obliviousness, and smiles, nodding back at the Running Men, confirming that he's back. Relieved and happy, the Running Men, sans Kuga, hug him.

The scene goes back to the laboratory, where Charming Gold is pinning Dr. Mala to the wall, threatening him when he is unable of giving any solutions to their problems. When Charming Gold asks him if he knows what happens to people who outlive their usefulness to him, Dr. Mala replies with a panicked 'yes'. Unsatisfied, Charming Gold turns his back on him, walking away as Dr. Mala falls to his knees from the stress.

We go back to the Running Men, who are sitting in the lobby with Liu as he explains to them the severity of the situation. Miyo agrees, adding that they also need to find out the truth of the games. Popo looks at Liu with excitement, telling him how cool he is and Liu looks back at the Running Men with a determined expression, the Running Men returning it as they cheer themselves on.

It cuts back to the laboratory once more, with Dr. Mala producing the amplifier. Once it's created, Charming Gold tries to inject it into the DV7, getting stopped by Dr. Mala, who warns him of the consequences if injects it. Charming Gold doesn't listen and pushes Dr. Mala out of the way, pulling the lever and injecting the amplifier onto the DV7, who begin to scream in pain.

## Characters

### **Main**

* Liu
* Popo
* Pala
* Lonky
* Gai
* Miyo
* Kuga

### **Side**

* Dr. Mala
* DV7
* Charming Gold

## Trivia

* The episode implies that Liu's drill-gun, like Mr. Suitcase, used to belong to Shan, as she is seen asking for it as soon as she finished building Mr. Suitcase.
* Liu's room is shown to have the same posters and desk as the ones present in Shan's laboratory.