'Salim Nam' achieved the highest viewership ratings for Saturday variety shows thanks to the activities of Park Seo-jin and his sister.
In the episode aired on the 10th, KBS 2TV's 'Salim Nam Season 2' (hereafter 'Salim Nam') featured Park Seo-jin and his sister Hyo-jung's bucket list challenges, as well as Kim Sang-hyuk's spring outing with his mother in celebration of Parents' Day.
The viewership rating for the day recorded 5.7% according to Nielsen Korea's nationwide tally, with a peak rating of 7.5% during a scene where Park Seo-jin edited a newly taken ID photo.
Park Seo-jin shared his daily life with his sister Hyo-jung, who had started a bucket list challenge. Previously, Park Seo-jin had written "Cut hair short" on Hyo-jung's bucket list, stating, "The more painful the past, the more you need to cut it off. That hair holds the past of an English teacher, a ski instructor, and the failure of a high school equivalency exam. When you go through bad experiences, change is necessary," encouraging Hyo-jung to transform her hairstyle.
However, when Hyo-jung hesitated, he showed her photos of Karina, Winter, and Kim Chae-won with short hair, saying, "If you cut your hair short, you'll look just like them. You're pretty enough," persuading her.
As a result, Hyo-jung decided to change her hairstyle to short hair for the first time in 10 years. Heading to the hair salon with Park Seo-jin, she revealed her intention to cut more than 25cm of hair, explaining, "I want to donate my hair (for pediatric cancer patients). My brother recently donated money for wildfire victims, and I felt like I should do something too, so I decided to donate my hair with a good feeling."
Hyo-jung then cut a portion of her hair herself before the transformation, and Park Seo-jin, watching, said, "I will start the cutting ceremony," and helped cut Hyo-jung's hair and even assisted with shampooing. However, as Hyo-jung's short hair was completed, Park Seo-jin jokingly teased, "It looks like a man got a short haircut. I’ve seen this kind of uncle somewhere. You look like Jung Hyung-don," eliciting laughter.
Transformed with short hair, Hyo-jung decided to make a passport to fill her bucket list bingo and even took an ID photo. She then resolved to challenge herself to obtain a Class 1 large vehicle license and visited a driving school for consultation. Later, for her first driving lesson, Hyo-jung held the bus steering wheel for the first time, causing Park Seo-jin to scream with a small mistake, but she calmly completed her practice. The driving instructor, watching, praised Hyo-jung, saying, "You're doing well. You have a good sense," raising expectations for her future challenges.
On that day, Kim Sang-hyuk visited his father's grave, who passed away when he was 11, with his mother in celebration of Parents' Day. Upon arriving at the grave, his mother shed tears, and Kim Sang-hyuk said, "My father loved stir-fried pork belly when he was alive. When my father was alive, I was too young at 11 to serve him food myself. I wanted to serve him the first meal I made myself," placing the stir-fried pork belly he prepared on the table.
While the mother and son reminisced about the past, suddenly someone called out, "Sang-hyuk!" and appeared. The person turned out to be a close colleague of his father's. His appearance, coming to visit on the anniversary of his father's passing and taking care of Sang-hyuk's family in place of his friend who passed away first, brought tears to Kim Sang-hyuk and his mother. The colleague expressed, "I should have visited more often, and I'm really sorry I couldn't," and Kim Sang-hyuk, overwhelmed, said, "I was very surprised. For a moment, it felt like my father was coming."
The colleague recalled the tragic accident when Kim Sang-hyuk's father fell into an underground construction site that was not covered with safety plates while riding his bicycle home. He shared, "When it was past midnight and he hadn't come home, Sang-hyuk's mother was anxiously waiting," and added, "It was only in the morning that we received a call from the police." At that time, the accident involving Kim Sang-hyuk's father was a shocking incident that made headlines. He confessed, "It felt like it didn't hurt at first when I got cut, but as time passed, my heart hurt more."
The colleague then handed over a photo taken with Kim Sang-hyuk's father and shared stories about him. He said, "My father was like a white dandelion. Most dandelions are yellow, but occasionally a white dandelion pops up. Dandelions have no waste from root to leaf, and he was a person who stood out even among the yellow dandelions," reminiscing, "It's a pity he left us too soon."
Kim Sang-hyuk's mother also shed tears as she shared a story she had kept deep in her heart for the first time in 32 years. Kim Sang-hyuk held his mother's hand tightly to comfort her. Additionally, Kim Sang-hyuk embraced his father's colleague, confessing, "I don't know why, but it was a great comfort. I felt warmth, and I could feel a bit of my father's lingering presence. It was so reassuring and grateful to know that such an adult exists."
