Picking up where I left off last time is the second installment of the review for Infinite’s Ranking King. Previously, I shared my thoughts on Ranking King’s first five episodes, finding them boring for the most part. Still, I continued watching the series, hoping to see some improvement.

Episode Six

Episode Six was a slower episode than the previous three. No action, the boys instead competing to see who was the “Knowledge King” by answering a series of questions. Sunggyu, Woohyun, Hoya, and surprisingly, Sungyeol, got the most questions correct, and in the end Sungyeol was crowned Knowledge King. Poor Sungjong had the hardest time, although most of questions were extremely easy. The easy questions added to the idleness of the episode. If they were more complex than simple math equations and common knowledge, the episode would’ve been far more interesting. However, you can’t expect the boys to be brainiacs, so the simple questions do make sense. The show picked up a little more at the end, when the boys were playing on a large game board, able to move forwards a few spaces if they got the question correct. Still, the episode was very slow and did nothing to build up excitement.

Episode Seven

Ranking King’s seventh episode, “Fashion King,” was more amusing than Episode Six, despite having no action or excitement. In this episode, the boys themselves ranked each other according to their fashion styles. Myungsoo, lover of black, was ranked last, which didn’t bother him in the least bit. Dongwoo got first place for his sense of style, the other members appreciating how well he matches and how well his personality shines through his fashion choices. Personally, Dongwoo wouldn’t have been my top choice, but I can understand where the members are coming from. What made this episode more amusing than the last was the banter between the members and the stylists. Poor coordi-noonas had to put up with Sunggyu’s persistence, Dongwoo’s melodrama, and Woohyun. Dongwoo’s mental breakdown over his outfit was cute in its fakeness and Sunggyu continues to be everyone’s favorite victim.

Episode Eight

Episode Eight is a continuation of Episode Seven, and the perspective now shifts to the maknaes. Myungsoo and Sungjong get all dressed up and photographed, causing the other members to feel nervous because admittedly, Myungsoo and Sungjong are good models. About halfway into the episode, the boys are judged by professional photographers and a super model, Song Kyung-ah. The judges were sweet and not too harsh, finding nice things to say about all the boys, but they appeared the most impressed with Sungjong. Watching the boys’ overenthusiastic reactions to their final rankings was highly amusing, especially when former model Woohyun was put in 6th place. Sunggyu got 3rd place, which was surprising because the judges hadn’t seemed very impressed with him. Myungsoo and Sungjong were naturally ranked the highest. though I would’ve put Sungjong in first place instead of L. Sungjong has more of a model attitude to him, and his poses were more natural and flattering than Myungsoo’s were.

Episode Nine 

In this episode of Ranking King, Infinite (minus Hoya, who was filming Reply 1997) is ranked according to their ambition. First, they play an intense round of Wack the Mole, Myungsoo winning first place. The boys then go on to play around on tiny little cars, which was absolutely adorable and amusing to watch, especially when Sunggyu started driving without regard for anyone or anything. Afterwards, they were given fast karts to compete against on. The show slows down at this point, getting redundant as the boys drive around the same track in no special way. Their big race at the end was also boring. In the end, Dongwoo was crowned Ambition King.

Episode Ten

The “Courage King” episode put Infinite in a horror movie-like situation, going around the Ranking Village at night to prove their bravery. The show begins with Infinite trading boring ghost stories before moving onto a haunted house (I’ve seen better at Halloween). The Haunted House was cheaply done,with poor makeup and costuming. Dongwoo showed himself to be the most cowardly out of the seven while Sungjong never appeared scared at all. The episode overall was one of Ranking King’s most boring.

Ranking King has a few good episodes and several very boring episodes. Obviously staged moments in the show are generally the most boring, a result of the boys’ horrible acting. Infinite themselves vary on this show. Sungjong doesn’t have much of a role in any of the episodes, mostly appearing in the background as his hyungs take up the spotlight. Woohyun and Sunggyu especially get  a lot of spotlight, but seeing as how they are the most entertaining, that can’t be helped. These episodes were a bit of an improvement from the first five but they still had their low points when the scenes seemed to drag. Hopefully the upcoming episodes will have more entertainment.