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Drama viewership ratings for the week of May 15-21, 2017

Now that the pre-emptions are over and done with, we were able to resume programming as usual this week, though the shakeups have only just begun with so many new shows about to flood the airwaves. Sageuk Rebel: Thief Who Stole the People ended its thirty-episode run at an impressive 14.4%, but even with the slight bump it got for its finale, it didn’t manage to beat out Whisper for first place. The competition was admittedly slim these past two weeks with KBS continuing to hold out before premiering a new Monday-Tuesday show, and this week, the network opted to air a re-edited version of 2016 mini-drama Baek-hee Has Returned.

Over in the middle of the week, Mystery Queen continued to hold steady at under 10%, while Ruler—Master of the Mask is emerging as a fan favorite. It’s still not pulling in insane numbers at just under 14%, but it’s a head and shoulders above romcom Suspicious Partner, at least where numbers are concerned. But Mystery Queen only has one week left, so it’ll be interesting to see how all of KBS’ new programming impacts the current schedule.

Tunnel came to a close this week, and as of this writing, its penultimate episode garnered a very impressive 5.8%. The execs over at OCN must be sad to see their latest hit go (the show broke the network’s prior record, earning the cast a well-deserved vacation). I still remember when OCN was the redheaded stepchild of all the cable networks, but we’ve come a long way from the racy days of Yacha. It’s really strange to think of that show within the context of the kind of cable network OCN is today, but that’s one show that definitely left an impression on me back in 2010, for better or worse. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: The times, they are a-changin’.

 
Drama viewership ratings for the week of May 15-21, 2017

Ep. # Station Rating
Monday, May 15
Baek-hee Has Returned 1-2 KBS 3.2%
Rebel: Thief Who Stole the People 29 MBC 12.1%
Whisper 14 SBS 17.0%
Tuesday, May 16
Baek-hee Has Returned 3-4 KBS 2.9%
Rebel: Thief Who Stole the People 30 MBC 14.4%
Whisper 15 SBS 16.4%
Wednesday, May 17
Mystery Queen 13 KBS 8.7%
Ruler—Master of the Mask 5 MBC 11.2%
Ruler—Master of the Mask 6 MBC 12.5%
Suspicious Partner 5 SBS 6.6%
Suspicious Partner 6 SBS 8.0%
Thursday, May 18
Mystery Queen 14 KBS 8.2%
Ruler—Master of the Mask 7 MBC 12.0%
Ruler—Master of the Mask 8 MBC 13.4%
Suspicious Partner 7 SBS 6.8%
Suspicious Partner 8 SBS 7.4%
Friday, May 19
Man to Man 9 JTBC 3.0%
Chicago Typewriter 11 tvN 2.4%
Saturday, May 20
Father Is Strange 23 KBS 24.0%
You’re Too Much 22 MBC Pre-empted
Thief-nom, Thief-nim 3 MBC 6.6%
Sister Is Alive 11 SBS 8.7%
Sister Is Alive 12 SBS 10.9%
Man to Man 10 JTBC 2.4%
Tunnel 15 OCN 5.8%
Chicago Typewriter 12 tvN 2.3%
Sunday, May 21
Father Is Strange 24 KBS 30.5%
You’re Too Much 22 MBC 12.8%
Thief-nom, Thief-nim 4 MBC 9.4%
Tunnel 16 OCN 6.5%

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With new premieres this coming week on mon_tue slot it will b more interesting to see if theres major shakeups. I wish the other two dramas can get double digits on wed n thu. They both deserved it. Congrats to Tunnel

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I feel kinda sad that MxM doesn't seem to be doing that fantastically because I love it so much. I'm not even thinking about the logic holes or anything, just the fact that I come out of those 2 hours each week feeling that much happier than before. And this coming from someone who loved SWDBS obsessively!

I hope Suspicious Partner continues to grow in ratings! I just started on Ruler because there's so much hype surrounding it, so I'll slowly be catching up on it to see if it really matches up to the ratings (though this means I'll have to put Chicago Typewriter on hold, argh. Too many dramas!).

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Man to Man is in my marathon list, but I saw vid of Nam Goongmin cameo in last epi lol ??? I saw gangster version of Chief Kim, I miss him! Song Joongki cameo was not very exciting though. I wished he was a spy.

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I actually liked NGM's cameo in the most recent episode, though I wish they gave him more screen time. Despite his relatively simple role and short scene, he took away my attention with his presence, and he had some interesting chemistry with SW and WK.

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LOL true. SJK's cameo kinda remind me Yoo Ah In's cameo in DOTS - short and not a very effective/memorable cameo. ? Among the best cameo in kdramaland was Jo Jung Seok's cameo in LOTBS.

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Favorite cameo I've seen yet! JJS's character had real impact on the story and our ditzy mermaid, and I cried bags of pearls (ha, I wish) -- and all because of a cameo!

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Sigh, I wish Joongki had been a spy too! I disliked how his cameo was just a mirror image of YAI's cameo in DOTS (which I really disliked too, because so much potential for bromance there!). Maybe he didn't have more time for more scenes, but eh, I'll take whatever Joongki I can get!

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???
The way they promoted it like we can get his cameo in at least one epi, not 2-3 min cameo. Kwang Soo's cameo in earlier epi of DOTS was more memorable.

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I'm so upset, Haish.... SJK, Why so short? LOL.

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Yes, way too short! I didn't mind what he was doing as long as I can see him.
Waiting for "Battleship" to premier in July. Hoping it'd be the same international release date too.

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Maybe he's too big of a star to have a good long cameo, or his schedule was too busy to be on set for a long time?

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@kiara I can't wait to watch his next upcoming movie which also include my another fav actor So ji sub! omg two my fav actor in one movie

@marina man is he that busy though? I wish he is like JANG HYUK. don't give other job priority outside acting haha

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If you can ignore the acting by the 2nd leads then Ruler is a really good drama which is tightly plotted and fast paced. It has a few plotholes but not enough to distract you.

Also YSH-KSH in the few moments they share together are just brilliant! Also the cinematography is gorgeous!

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i think it if you can ignore the acting of the female second lead yoon so hee..then its a really good drama...L might not be great but he seems good enough..i have no serious problems with his acting as of now..haha

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I didn't enjoy the most recent episodes of MTM much, primarily because the spy mission wasn't that interesting, and DH was plain annoying. I still cannot take to the romance that is going to brew between DH and SW. DH did not seem to take SW's secret agent job seriously, or she probably had a different idea as to what a secret agent meant. She's constantly demanding the impossible, like SW's body belonged to them and the constant need to report SW's whereabouts etc to her. I mean, what? Why was she behaving like an entitled girlfriend when they have already broken up? Even if SW gave her his password to enter his abode, it did not mean she could enter it any time she wanted to check on him. I didn't like how she invaded his personal space for her own curiosity or whatever was motivating her to seek out his abode.

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I actually thought the "your body belongs to us" was just for comedic effect, so I didn't take that bit seriously!

Regarding the whole "I need to know where you are/I'm gonna enter your house any time I want to" - I think she's reacting normally for someone who's gone through being used and manipulated by SW, and she's just trying to prevent herself from being hurt all over again. Sure, it's not exactly polite for her to be staying around his loft without his permission, but I don't think she can trust him any more yet she can't let him go either, which is why I think she was so suspicious about him leaving and had to go check up on him. I kind of understand where she's coming from! (Plus, he did give her the PIN, and the GPS tracker, which means he didn't really mind all that much. Actually, I doubt he minds at all, lol.)

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agreed with you, since DH still stick with SW, i dont see any potential of them to move on, like before this SW plan to leave her w/o words, but in the end of the day, Bam! gotcha! lol

@s9313071e actually i dont found shes annoying tbvh, she already stated that she did all that for the sake of UG's money (just incase if SW run away again lol), otherwise shes also kinda teach him that shes worth fighting for.

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yeah me too, since Man x Man is number 1 on my list... *sigh* but because of the last episode (9&10) that I keep re-watching and as long as I am enjoying to watch them I am definitely fine.

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Congratulation to tunnel! I'll be sad to see it go, I've loved it throughout. I'm glad it's appreciated :)

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I love Tunnel too. It's one of the better written time traveling crime thrillers out there in kdramaland, and I am sad that it is ending in a few hours. I will miss everyone in the drama for the fun, laughter, thrill and tension they have provided us every weekend for the past few months.

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just watched episode 15 and shin jae yi really played well by lee yoo young. But it look like she'll gonna be the next victim.

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I watched Chicago Typewriter epi 11-12 twice and now I don't know how I can wait for next Friday ?????? This drama is not something that anyone can suffer SLS (at least not for me) because Han Se Ju is so strong as male lead, but I cannot not to feel sad for our puppy ghost! I still hope he gets reincarnated by the end of the drama and have happy ending with Bang Jin!

And somebody please tell me, where can I register to get that "kiss for the country". Jeong Seol is the epitome of successful fan because she got hugs, kissess and even love from her bias. I want to be her....

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Haha. To be honest, I am secretly rooting for Yoo to be together with Seol, although I know it's a foregone conclusion that Seol would end up with SJ. Yoo is so earnest in his feelings for Seol that I feel bad for him to witness Seol and SJ kissing in the ward.

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I feel bad for him honestly, but what I want for him after they find out what truly happened in the past, is for him to him to move on from the past lives and get reincarnated in this life. I wish Bang Jin's mother have that superpower? He is genuinely loves Seol, but Seol probably loves Se Ju way too much already. I want him to have a happe ending with BanG Jin because Bang Jin is genuinely likes him too. I hope she knows that Yoo is a ghost soon.

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(re: CT) I'm with you about our puppy ghost. Every scene between him and Seol is heartbreaking :'(
I should've waited until CT has its last episode because tbh I felt disconnected when I watched ep.11. Maybe I just have too many dramas on my plate right now, cz It took a while to really get into the story and felt all the feeels there. Worse thing is when I'm already so into it, I have to wait another week to see the continuation of the story -,-

You probably need to save a country in the past to get a fan's life like Seol gets lol.

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If our plate is full with drama, it is very to feel disconnect with the plot of the drama. It happened to me often, fortunately at the moment CT is the second drama that I am fully invested after Rebel that I found it is easier to connect with it.

You are right, but there's no way I can go back to past live now. LOL.I can just only dreaming.

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Ahh Suspicious Partner! It's my crack right now! Seriously, the numbers don't reflect the merit of the drama.

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I agree, it's such a well-made drama with a really fantastic cast and the chemistry of the leads is off the chart. I'm guessing the problem is that all of the dramas in that slot are excellent. I haven't started Ruler of the Mask, but I can well imagine that Kim So-hyun and Yoo Seung-ho are amazing, and I absolutely love Mystery Queen. I hate this inevitable ratings battle because seriously, I feel like all those dramas are incredible and deserve being talked about and appreciated.

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I am in love with Mystery Queen nd Suspicious Partner. Former one is so hook me in every episodes and got me wait for next one so desperately.Later one breaking every rom com cliches in a hilarious way.Both drama has great cast,top notch acting, flawless script.They deserve more viewers and appreciation.I don't understand why good dramas are always under appreciated?

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I hope word of mouth will make SP ratings increase. All of us here love it, korea dont seem to hate it.

I believe look out will come third. Fight my way will start something about 8%

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I also think Lookout will be at the third place, but maybe will not have a huge gap with Fight My Way. Fight My Way probably will start around what Suspicious Partner got.
I am equally excited to see these two new drama and want both to do well.

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seriously, I'm so pissed off at Song Jong Ki's cameo. I mean, That's it? LOL...

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I know right? I thought SJK will have a better cameo than a few seconds as a bank teller. Sigh!

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I miss his pretty face.. But But.... I need his acting. He only appears like 3 minutes? OMG! He is there just to look pretty LOL. Please The Battleship Island, come faster!

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Wooo MQ is keeping a steady rating! Love that show <3
SP is doing pretty decently, hope to catch up to the recent episodes. Haven't got the time to watch Ruler as I feel like this show require some good attention span from me and I have such low attention span sometimes :P
Excited for Fight My Way and Circle. It's been too long since Kim Ji Won's previous drama. Also going to checkout Lookout as well. FMW probably will get similar ratings as SP, or maybe even higher. Lookout will probably range somewhere there too. Can't say for Circle but maybe 5%? Who knows since I don't remember tvn ratings so much. Whisper is tough competition for FMW and Lookout.

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I am happy MQ has steady rating although they deserves more.This is a great drama altogether.If anyone is hesitating to watch, plz watch it, u r not gonna regret it. Wonderful drama it is.

SP is great too.Their chemistry, acting, plot is fascinating.Sometimes I am out of my breath for laughing.

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awwww I'm so happy Rebel closed out at 14-odd percent, that's about 4 times what the drama before it was getting and really good considering that MBC doesn't seem to have promoted it all that much. I hope it leads to improved opportunities for the cast and crew, because heaven knows their performances show they've earned it.

I hope Fight My Way does well too, but contemporary youth dramas (that weren't melos or thrillers) haven't exactly been a ratings magnet on MBC/SBS/KBS over the last five years so I hope this one takes off despite its genre - I need it to do well for Kim Ji-won's sake.

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It was good to see both MBC drama From Mon-Thurs did great in last week - both with double digits. It has been a long time for MBC. I still wish Rebel casts and crews get something from this achievement. They deserve it. Compared to Ruler, MBC didn't promoted Rebel that much. I also hope MBC takes a good care of Hwan Jin Young so she doesn't go to other station. Both her drama Rebel and King's Daughter received decent rating, even if it is not a hit. I think if they put King's Daughter on weekend slot, the rating would be around 20%-30%.

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I know right! King's Daughter was such an underrated gem.

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I doubt it would it get anywhere near the 20% ratings on the weekend slot if you look at all the weekend sageuks around 2013-1014.
Jeong Do-jeon was the one to beat during the weekend and it only managed to hit 19.8% in ratings.

I think MBC knew what they were doing. It fared better as a daily sageuk along with Gu Am Heo Joon.

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Ahh I didn't remember their ratings during that time. Thanks for reminding me. I just feel if it is aired during weekend slot, it will receive better attention in Korea and internationally.

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Is the MBC Wednesday-Thursday slump finally over?!

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It seems so.. Koreans love Yoo Seung Ho, Kim So Hyun and sageuk and that tells a lot their preference for a drama. MQ and SP sadly have similar genres so maybe people opt to watch something different out of the three, which is Ruler.

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haha...the king of MBC' wednesday -thursday spot is still W from last year...that was the most hyped drama of MBC last year....in fact it can be said that that has been the last MBC drama with the greatest amount of hype back in korea and internationally...i'm not sure yet but hopefully..ruler gets close enough. but even if it doesnt get close enough...at least..its doing well enough to end the slump

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I think Ruler will do well in korea but it wont be a hit international

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I think Ruler is already doing well internationaly. It has high streaming views on Dramafever and iQiYi.

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@Solo,

Agree. Even VIU released subs really fast for this drama, about 2 hours after broadcast.

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Damn why is Circle on tvN? And I've just made a resolution not to watch anything from them because the recent unfortunate suicide of their rookie PD left such a bad taste in my mouth.

Anyway, I'll stick to reading the recaps then and wish the best to my boy YJG as well as the cast and production team. I hope it will make for an enthralling watching experience.

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I wish it was showing in a different channel too. I feel like supporting tvN after that incident.

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*don't*

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I just hope to hear something again regarding that incident but I feel like I hold them in higher regards than they deserve -__-. I just can hope that YJG's next project will be with another channel :'(.

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Can someone explain the difference between KBS, MBC and tvN, OCN cable networks?
Why is KBS and MBC given much importance than the other 2?

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KBS, MBC, SBS - all are public channels.

tvN, OCN, jTBC - all cable channels. Viewers need to pay in order for them to watch any drama/ programme in these channels.

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KBS, MBC and SBS are public channels, so everyone can watch them. OCN, tvN are cable channels, wich means you have to pay in order to watch them. Until a couple of years ago the public channels always had much higher ratings and getting more than 1% ratings was considered a success for cable dramas.
But since then there have been quite a few cable dramas like the Reply series, Strong Woman Do Bong Soon or Goblin that have reached much higher ratings, some even breaking 10 or 15%. So the times have definitely changed and rather than the public channels being more important, it's impressive that the cable channels can reach a much bigger audience now, because they produced quality dramas.

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Too many good shows too little time...

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I am glad FIS is doing so well in its weekend slots. The drama, especially the way the relationships are written, is daebak! Love the emotional scene Ahn has with Papa Byun and how affected Papa Byun was by his confession. I love it that Papa Byun has so much love to offer to everyone around him, even if that person is not related to him. I hope the ratings would increase beyond 30% soon.

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I wish the same too! I am enjoying FIS much more than Laurel Tree Tailor because FIS has more enjoyable characters. Lee Yu Ri and Ryu Soo Young want this drama to get more than 40%! ? I wish they can reach it.

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OMGG Whisper hit 17%?? I wasn't expecting that. By this time next week Mystery Queen will have ended and idk how I'll get through that. I love the neighborhood squad so much and the leads are amazing.

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After a long time, I got my types drama which is MQ. I an glad I start watch it.It is a wonderful drama.

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I just want tunnel hits 7 ....this show needs to appreciated because i think this show is not popular as others bit it should be

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JTBC, You can't keep going strong all seasons. OCN has its devout audience. They created a niche and built their own space and were able to grab audience from other channels. Koreans like action, suspense stuff and that's what OCN is offering. THey are reaping benefits of the image they built.

Oppa can't compete with strong women. so hyped it was.
Queen is keeping her place intact and i think Fight My Way will also premiere around 5-9%.

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HELP. I would really appreciate if javabeans or someone writes another 'Premiere Watch' please? I am feeling a bit overwhelmed (so many shows, so little time) and need to organise myself. Are Fight My Way and Lookout premiering this coming week? Thanks!

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Sorry, I messed up the bold font. I did not mean to sound that desperate! XD

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I support you suggestion for another Premier Watch! Upcoming shows:

1) Fight My Way (KBS) , Lookout (MBC) Circle (tvN) - all start 22 nd May.

2) My Sassy Girl (SBS) - follows Whisper, starts on 29th May

3) Queen of Seven Days (KBS) -follow Mystery Queen, starts 31st May

4) Duel (OCN) - follows Tunnel, starts 3rd June

5) The Best Hit (KBS) - starts 2nnd June

6) Secret Forest (tvn) - follows Chicago Typewriter -starts 10 June

I am writing this for my record as well! ? We seriously need drama organizer LOL

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It's already posted!

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Excellent, it's like they read my mind! :D

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Still have to start Ruler of the Mark but I still cannot understand why CT is not getting better ratings. Awesome cinematography, awesome actors and the story is fascinating.

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"but we’ve come a long way from the racy days of Yacha"
Yes we have!

I was starting to like CGV when "Eight Days", "Killer K" came out but then I found out that CJ owns it too.
That would be 3 against jTBC so not fair.

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I feel kinda sad....??

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Suspicious Partner is quite good story wise alright! Those who're not watching, sure are missing out! I think we would be experiencing different things on different weeks, last week, it was more chilly, this week is fun, and witty. And JCW's character is so refreshing, considering this is his first rom-com, without any action! Hope the ratings pick up. I know koreans love their sageuks, but SP is definitely my new drama fav, I know what I would be watching at least. Lol.

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Now i can see why ManxMan has low rating bcos of the story itself. People likes Park Hae Jin then they tune in to watch it but without him in the drama is worthless. Leading actress is no way match with PHJ and i am abit disappointed with this drama.

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Yeah definitely, i think in dramabeans someone had talked about the plot felt like b-list drama which is true i guess. It doesn't feel like they are actually doing an important mission. The villain is so underutilized and the humor would sometimes be flat, depends on the viewers sense of humor.

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I cant stand DH in MxM she is just look very annoying. I can see why this drama has low rating bcos of it story line. Spy???? Not that interesting

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Finally tunnel ended ..my fav drama of the year miss you tunnel and Choi jin hyuk

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Yes! Father is Strange hit 30% Sunday! You go, Lee Joon and Lee Yuri!

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Chicago typwriter has great story line, acting, cinematography and soundtrack. AAAAA such a pity, it deserve high rating in korean :(

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I keep thinking that this was just bad timing. If this drama came out in autumn or winter, it would have done so much better, but YAI has enlistment then..

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the acting fr the young cast is lackluster. that's why.

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Tunnel don't go
Crying?

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what does
"coming from someone who loved SWDBS" mean..?

SWDBS is byword for what?

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Strong Woman Do Bong Soon

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i know the name of the drama... but what does liking SWDBS mean?

What does it stand for

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I don't understand why the viewer rating for chicago typewriter is so low. This drama is so good and so underrated.

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Rebel finishing on a high <3

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I hope suspicious partner gets momentum and rises. It's too good for the public to be missing it.

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I second this. it's really such a precious gem with well-interwoven genres so let it rise!

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Well I think Suspicious Partner deserves to have a high rating....The chemistry and acting of the 2 lead stars are undeniably perfect....It's good to see ji chang wook play a different role and he nails it...

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