Summer Vacation: Jung Yu Mi, Choi Woo Shik, Park Seo Joon's episode draws flak over 'Japanese style home'

The first episode of the tvN's variety show Summer Vacation premiered on July 17. The series, which sees South Korean celebrities escape to a home vacation with friends, family or even alone to an abode outside the busy cities, kicked off the reality show with Jung Yu Mi, Choi Woo Shik and Park Seo Joon. The Train To Busan co-stars were seen travelling together to the vacation home and eventually, Seo Joon joined them as a guest. Following the premiere of the show, viewers pointed out the house the trio stayed in featured elements of a Japanese home. 

As reported by Soompi, viewers pointed out that the home vacation spot chosen for the episode had similarities to the traditional Japanese-style home. The attic, sliding doors and ceiling style resembled closely to homes in Japan. That wasn't all pointed out in the episode. Viewers also felt that variety show felt similar to the Japanese PlayStation game called My Summer Vacation.

Following the controversy, the show's producer issued a statement where they apologised for the discomfort caused due to the show. The production team explained their location hunting process in the statement. They revealed that they "found a pretty village that was nice enough to live in for one month." They added that the house was the oldest property in the village. 

"Since it is an old house built in the 1950s, while preparing for the program, we kept the foundation of the original house and only changed the color of the roof and cleaned up the exterior. We thought that the three yards outside fit our plans for a home-vacation reality show that reflects the current reality in which we are spending more time at home," the statement said. 

The makers confessed they did not think much about the interiors for they felt it wasn't important. "We feel apologetic for not having carefully considered any possible discomfort our viewers might have felt. We also apologize for causing an inconvenience to the elderly couple that owns the house," they added. Addressing the potential plagiarism accusation, the team said they weren't aware of the game's existence. 

Read the full statement here: 

Hello.

This is the production team of ‘Summer Vacation.’ First off, we would like to apologize to those who experienced discomfort while watching.

We will explain the filming set. Ahead of filming ‘Summer Vacation,’ we found a pretty village that was nice enough to live in for one month, and we located the oldest house in the neighborhood. With its attic and three yards, we thought it would be suitable to showcase our cast in a variety of situations.

Since it is an old house built in the 1950s, while preparing for the program, we kept the foundation of the original house and only changed the color of the roof and cleaned up the exterior. We thought that the three yards outside fit our plans for a home-vacation reality show that reflects the current reality in which we are spending more time at home. We did not think much about the house or its interior because we did not think it was very important, and we feel apologetic for not having carefully considered any possible discomfort our viewers might have felt. We also apologize for causing an inconvenience to the elderly couple that owns the house.

After humbly accepting the feedback from our viewers, we are redoing the doors and windows of the house in order to minimize viewer discomfort before we move into our second filming. We will work hard to make a better impression in the future.

Lastly, regarding feedback about similarities to a certain game, we would like to let you know that we do not know the game and did not reference or have it in mind at all.

While the episode drew flak, it also gave some heartwarming moments. This included Jung Yu Mi and Choi Woo Shik performing tasks like writing journals, cooking and hosting the Itaewon Class star for a meal. Park Seo Joon brought a watermelon for the two stars when he joined them at the house. They were seen relishing the fruit before they dived into other activities. 

What did you think of the episode? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.