…and we’re off!

KBS and MBC both premiered their new dramas today, one a sageuk starring Jumong star Song Il-kook (Kingdom of Wind), and the other a classical-music-based drama featuring White Tower’s intense Kim Myung-min (Beethoven Virus). Both come highly anticipated, not least because we’ve got two big names going head-to-head.

While KBS has had several decently performing sageuks this year (Hong Gil Dong, Great King Sejong), MBC is the one who needed the hit more, having had a rather dismal year. Both stations had their share of flops, but KBS isn’t in as much of a slump, with several strong hits; MBC really has only had one bona fide success in The Last Scandal of My Life and several high-profile misses.

With today’s showings, MBC emerged just a hair ahead with Beethoven Virus, its first episode earning a 15.7% against Kingdom of Wind’s 14.7% (TNS Media ratings). That puts them virtually even, and are pretty good numbers for both dramas. (SBS’s modestly popular Working Mom concludes in two weeks and is replaced by a third potential heavy-hitter, The Painter of Wind.)

Already buzz seems tentatively positive for both series, with Kingdom of Wind earning praise for its grand-scale battle scenes and acting (although some voiced their concerns that the historical-based stories may rehash familiar territory from other dramas of its ilk, particularly Jumong, which also starred Song Il-kook). On the other hand, Beethoven features an “upbeat,” light tone and a lot of interest in seeing its three stars performing in their musical milieu. Netizens generally expressed satisfaction at a first episode that met their expectations.

I haven’t seen either premiere, so I can’t weigh in yet (though I’m leaning more toward Beethoven) — thoughts?

Via Asia Economy

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Tags: Beethoven Virus, drama ratings, Kim Myung-min, Kingdom of Wind, Lee Jia, Song Il-kook

Filed under: Drama Casting & News by javabeans - 37 Comments →

With a special broadcast kicking off the East of Eden extravaganza, eyes have turned to the upcoming Monday-Tuesday ratings rivalry, although Tazza won’t be making its debut until Gourmet ends in a few weeks.

Oddly enough, Eden chose to air a one-hour special on Monday, and plans to air both Episodes 1 & 2 on Tuesday, which they see as a method for grabbing viewers.

Thus it’s probably premature to draw conclusions based on ratings data on Day 1, but no matter how you slice it, the numbers were a severe disappointment to the high-budget, way-overhyped East of Eden. Some have even gone so far as to call its 6.2% first-day ratings (the special, mind you, not Episode 1) a “crushing defeat.” It came in last place, although just by a hair.

More Monday-Tuesday ratings nonsense >>

Tags: drama ratings, East of Eden, Gourmet, Love & Marriage, Tazza

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When Night Comes, Strongest Chil Woo

This is interesting because I’m actually watching all three Monday-Tuesday dramas right now, and I agree with the general points made, and yet find the outcome curious. Gourmet is the undeniable winner, consistently earning more viewers than When Night Comes and Strongest Chil Woo combined — and based on what I’ve seen, rightly so.

But what strikes me as odd is that although Chil Woo manages every week to barely beat out Night, ratings-wise, their numbers have been fairly comparable. So why is one being called a mania drama (a cult hit), while the other is on the verge of being pegged a flop? To wit:

MBC’s ambitiously prepared Monday-Tuesday drama When Night Comes hasn’t been able to work free of its struggle. On top of that, its lead actors’ conditions have been aggravated by injury. These days, Night seems to be acting true to its title, slipping into trouble when night comes along.

And yet, by contrast:

The KBS2 MondayTuesday drama starring Eric (Moon Jung-hyuk), Strongest Chil Woo, seems set for mania drama status following Hong Gil Dong.

Although the ratings have come to a standstill after going up and down around the 10% mark following the premiere, it’s stirring up strong response within a faction of its viewership.

SONG OF THE DAY

When Night Comes OST - “사랑 탐험” (Love exploration) by Buga Kingz [ Download ]

 
What’s the deal with Monday-Tuesday dramas? >>

Tags: drama ratings, Eric, Gourmet, Kim Sun-ah, Lee Dong-gun, mania dramas, Strongest Chil Woo, When Night Comes

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Bad Love, Rivals

Perhaps as a corollary to this discussion of why ratings are important, for better or for worse (usually for worse), here’s an article that discusses one such ramification: actors who come attached with high price tags that the drama then is unable to recoup when a drama flops in the ratings.

(One thing to note: Despite the high numbers listed, Korean actors find most of their paychecks going to management companies, as actress Choi Jin-shil recently gained attention for mentioning. In the U.S., agents are only allowed to take 10% — though more fees get siphoned off to managers, publicists, lawyers, and the like — but that percentage is much higher for Korean celebs.)

Even if a drama flops, stars’ asking prices continue to soar. It’s not as though market theory applies, and those prices keep rising, defying logic. Even when a drama meets with crushing failure, hurting the production company behind it, a star’s fee still climbs.

This year saw many dramas that failed to draw in good results or produce high ratings, such as the dramas Single Papa in Love, Bad Love, Rivals, Three Dads, One Mom, Who Are You?, Spotlight, I Love You, Robbers, and many others. …

SONG OF THE DAY

Rivals OST - “지켜줄게” (I’ll protect you) by Lee Shin-sung [ Download ]

 
More disappointing dramas with highly paid actors >>

Tags: Bad Love, Bulhandang/Robbers, drama production, drama ratings, Park Shin-yang, War of Money

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MBC’s When Night Comes, SBS’s Iljimae

 
The following article from OSEN takes a look at the difference between the types of dramas on the air these days. I find a lot of mainstream entertainment press to be oversimplified (I’m sure I’m just not looking in the right places), but it’s something to chew on, for those of us who are curious about the relationship between ratings and the popularity/quality/success of a drama — as much as we all like to say it doesn’t matter.

Popular Dramas, Buzzworthy Dramas — There’s a Difference

There are dramas that bring in high viewership ratings but don’t get talked about much. On the other hand, there are also dramas that don’t pull in strong ratings numbers but are constantly being discussed. A drama’s content, actors, and its PR are all potential factors in drawing attention, but they don’t necessarily correlate to good ratings. Because there are many ways to watch a drama these days, the significance of ratings is gradually receding, but it’s still the primary factor in deciding advertising, and is the standard for measuring popularity. …

SONG OF THE DAY

Gourmet OST - “너에게” (To you) by Casker. I’m still trying to catch up on Gourmet, but for now I will say it has a standout soundtrack. [ Download ]

 
More popular and buzzworthy dramas >>

Tags: daily dramas, drama ratings, Gourmet, Iljimae, La Dolce Vita, Lee Dong-wook, manhwa adaptations, mania dramas, My Sweet Seoul, Oh Yeon-soo, sageuk dramas, Sohn Ye-jin, Spotlight, Strongest Chil Woo, When Night Comes, You're My Destiny

Filed under: Drama Casting & News by javabeans - 32 Comments →