View source for Now On My Way to Meet You

{{Short description|2011– South Korean variety show}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2023}}
{{Infobox television
| genre        = [[Variety show]]
| creator      = Lee Jin-min
| presenter    = [[Nam Hee-suk]]<br>[[Kim Jong-min]]
| country      = South Korea
| language     = Korean
| producer     = Kong Hyosoon<ref name="NYT Mag">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/08/magazine/korea-tv-reunification.html|title=Where North and South Korea Meet: On TV|first=E. Tammy|last=Kim|date= May 8, 2019|work=[[New York Times]]}}</ref>
| runtime      = 90 minutes<ref name="NYT Mag" />
| num_seasons  = 7
| num_episodes = 674
| camera       = [[Multiple-camera setup|Multiple]]
| company      = [[The Dong-a Ilbo|Dong A Network]]
| first_aired  = {{Start date|2011|12|4}}
| last_aired   = present
| channel      = [[Channel A (TV channel)|Channel A]]
| image        =
}}
'''''Now On My Way to Meet You''''' ({{Korean|hangul=이제 만나러 갑니다|rr=Ije mannareo gamnida}}) is a South Korean [[variety show]] which has aired on [[Channel A (TV channel)|Channel A]] since December 4, 2011. It is part [[talk show]], part [[talent show]], and part [[beauty pageant]].<ref>{{cite episode |title=Secret State of North Korea |series=[[Frontline (American TV program)|Frontline]] |season=32 |number=6 |network=PBS |date=January 14, 2014 |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/secret-state-of-north-korea/ |minutes=32:46}}</ref>
The show is broadcast on Sunday nights at 11:00 PM over cable television, and is shot in [[Goyang]], a [[satellite city]] northwest of [[Seoul]].{{Citation needed|date=May 2023}}
== Format ==
When the show first aired, it was intended to be reuniting defectors with their estranged relatives. Episodes were shot at people's homes or in restaurants. The show never facilitated such reunions, and quickly changed format to a variety show shot in a "glitzy game-show-type set".<ref name="NYT Mag" />
The guests are generally young female [[North Korean defectors]] (dubbed by the producers as "defector beauties") who discuss their experiences in both North and South Korea. They discuss topics including the North Korean lifestyle, products, and food.<ref name="NYT Mag" /> The guests are questioned by four male panelists, and perform comedy sketches, songs, and dance.<ref>{{cite news|language=en|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/southkorea/9346183/North-Korean-defectors-parade-themselves-on-South-Korean-talent-show.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120621215646/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/southkorea/9346183/North-Korean-defectors-parade-themselves-on-South-Korean-talent-show.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=21 June 2012|title=North Korean defectors parade themselves on South Korean talent show|date=21 June 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|language=en|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/06/14/north-korea-tv-show/2411645/|title=North Korean defectors shine on South Korean TV show|author=Calum McLeod|date=15 June 2013}}</ref>
As of 2019, about 400 North Korean defectors have appeared on the show.<ref name="NYT Mag" /> The most famous defector participant has been activist [[Yeonmi Park]].<ref>{{cite news |date=October 22, 2014 |title=탈북자 박연미, '이만갑'서 7년만에 언니 찾은 사연 공개 |language=Korean |publisher=[[Korea Daily]] |url=http://www.ikoreadaily.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=153626}}</ref>
== Reception and coverage ==
The show has been credited by the North Korean defector guests with changing the perception that South Koreans have of North Korean defectors and taking the stigma out of being a North Korean defector,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://gpinvestigations.pri.org/from-tyranny-to-reality-tv-meet-the-celebrity-defector-women-of-north-korea-388c039a9351|title=From tyranny to reality TV: Meet the celebrity defector women of North Korea|first= Patrick|last= Winn|date=October 9, 2017}}</ref> but also criticized by defectors for exaggerating or falsifying negative aspects of life in the north to gain viewers.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Kang|first=Tae-jun|title=South Korean Broadcasters Change the Way They Cover North Korea|date=November 2, 2018|work=The Diplomat|url=https://thediplomat.com/2018/11/south-korean-broadcasters-change-the-way-they-cover-north-korea/|accessdate=2021-05-28}}</ref>
In April 2017, ''[[Unreported World]]'' produced a documentary about the show, hosted by [[Seyi Rhodes]].{{Citation needed|date=May 2023}}
== See also ==
* [[North Korean defectors]]
== References ==
<references/>
==Further reading==
* {{cite news |url=https://openaccess.leidenuniv.nl/handle/1887/44401 |title=Now On My Way to Meet Who? South Korean Television, North Korean Refugees, and the Dilemmas of Representation |first1=Stephen |last1=Epstein |first2=Christopher |last2=Green |magazine=The Asia-Pacific Journal |volume=41 |number=2| date=14 October 2013}}
{{North Korean defectors in popular media}}{{North Korean defectors}}
[[Category:South Korean television talk shows]]
[[Category:Works about North Korea–South Korea relations]]
[[Category:Works about North Korean defectors]]