Korean Weekly News - March 13

After making 3 Billion Yen (25 Billion Won) in its Japanese theater run, the 2004 melodrama 내 머리속의 지우개 (A Moment To Remember) will become an Internet Drama. The film, starring Son Ye-Jin and Jung Woo-Sung, became the most successful Korean film ever released in Japan, beating another melodrama starring Son, Hur Jin-Ho's 외출 (April Snow). Japanese Media reported on March 10 that Gyao, a free Live Internet Channel, will start broadcasting the Drama, entitled Another Letter, from April 26. The script was written by Kimura Motoko, and the Drama marks the 1 year anniversary of the station. More or less reprising the story of the film, the show will star Kashii Yu, Tanaka Kei and Hakamada Yoshihiko, and will start shooting in Shizuoka and Izu in mid April, for six 30 Minute episodes. This means the story the Korean film was adapted from -- a real story of a Japanese woman catching Alzheimer's disease -- will finally have its Japanese counterpart this Spring. A DVD release should follow shortly.

We've followed in depth the now legendary 왕의 남자 (The King and The Clown), which became the most successful Korean film of all time last week, and passed the 12 Million tickets mark this Weekend. But it seems its makers haven't changed their approach to this project, as they're not rushing into foreign distribution deals to take advantage of the buzz generated by its success. Better yet, Eagle Pictures announced they will distribute the film in Japan themselves, becoming the first Korean company to directly market their film overseas without going through foreign companies first. A report on the Asahi Shimbun dated March 6 noted that 'The King and The Clown' will be released in Spring 2007 all over Japan, through a partnership between Japan's Kadokawa Herald and the Korean distributors. Jung Jin-Wan, President of Eagle Pictures, announced that Cinema Service will use CJ Entertainment for International Sales, like they've been for the last year or so, and Director Lee Joon-Ik along with the actors will participate in promotion ahead of next year's release. This is another sign of the producers' confidence in the project, as instead of banking on easy profit coming from distribution deals -- which could have been quite underwhelming, as Japanese distrib. sales usually are dominated by star power, something this film clearly lack(ed), at least in the Japanese market -- they'll market the film themselves and try to set new standards in overseas performances of Korean films.

Currently enjoying her 'bad girl' role in 궁 (Princess Hours), Song Ji-Hyo will have to drop out of the show earlier than expected. The MBC hit was initially planned as a 20 Episodes Drama, but due to its popularity it was first extended to 24, and now a second Season is rumoured to be in the works. Of course the biggest problem forcing Song to opt out before the end was her schedule. She signed on for other commitments thinking the show would end at the 20th Episode, and will now have to stop there whether she likes it or not. What she will be doing is starting the shoot of her new film, Yoon Jae-Yeon's 요가 학원 (Yoga Academy), where she will play the lead. The film reunites Song with Director Yoon, who allowed her to debut on the big screen last Summer 2003, when 여우계단 (Wishing Stairs) released. Netizens, who started calling her 'Hyomilla' as her role in 'Princess Hours' mirrors in some way the Camilla Parker Bowles situation, will now have to find a new favourite bad girl, at least for the final four episodes of the series.

After casting Kim Sang-Joong from 투사부일체 (My Boss, My Teacher), Lee Mu-Young's upcoming black comedy 아버지와 마리와 나 (Daddy, Mari and I) continues to add pieces to the puzzle. Kim Heung-Soo, who had his breakthrough performance in Noh Hee-Kyung's 꽃보다 아름다워 (More Beautiful Than Flowers) and confirmed his huge improvement in last year's 해신 (Emperor of the Sea), was added to the cast of the film, which starts shooting at the end of the month. The film tells the story of a young man (Kim Heung-Soo) who suddenly finds himself living with his crippled father (Kim Sang-Joong) and his newfound partner, an unmarried mother several years his junior, played by Yoo In-Young of 러브홀릭 (Loveholic) -- uh oh. Kim took guitar lessons and hit the gym for the role, which is his first major shot in Chungmuro after years of paying his dues in lame sitcoms and bit roles on TV Dramas.

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TV DRAMA NEWS
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After dropping out of the upcoming SBS Drama 불량가족 (Bad Family), to be replaced by Nam Sang-Mi, Han Chae-Young has found a new project. She will star in Jung Se-Ho's new Drama 불꽃놀이 (Fireworks), which will start airing on May 13 after the conclusion of the Historical Drama 신돈 (Shin Don). This is the first Drama since last year's 온리유 (Only You) for Han, whose popularity hit a peak after the conclusion of last year's KBS Drama 쾌걸 춘향 (Sassy Chunhyang). Jung, responsible for many hits of the past like 청춘의 덫 (Trap of Youth), the campy classic M and 경찰특공대 (SWAT Police), will work alongside writer Kim Soon-Deok of 돌아온 싱글 (Return of the Singles) in the new Drama, which will also star Kang Ji-Hwan. Han plays a 노처녀 (old broad. Han Chae-Young? What's next, child actors playing grandmothers?) who works in disguise to avenge the betrayal of her former lover. This will apparently mark a big change for the young star, usually associated with breezy and lightweight roles.

As you probably know already, KBS Media will release 이 죽일놈의 사랑 (A Love To Kill) on DVD this coming March 17. But the show's various fanclubs, who wrote several petitions to get a Director's Cut, convinced producers, and they'll finally get their wish. While the version releasing next week will have some extra features and the 16 Episodes with English and Korean Subtitles, a Director's Cut will be released in mid-May, with more Rain-Shin Min-Ah goodness! Or, if you've seen the Drama without the help of alcoholic beverages, you'd be probably more inclined to say 'more of the biggest embarrassment in Lee Kyung-Hee's career', but I digress. Fans of the show even went looking for executives at KBS Media's offices, and requested the release of the Director's Cut. This new version will have a full version of the bridge scene at the beginning, a commentary from writer Lee Kyung-Hee and PD Kim Gyu-Tae (where I hope they'll explain why things went so wrong), several interviews and more. Jokes aside, it's about time KBS and other DVD producers start listening to fans, as the same exact thing happened for last year's amazing 부활 (Rebirth) [which has become a Director's Cut + tons of extras also thanks to the show's fans]. Now if that extended to Bitwin and MBC shows...

SBS already announced their plans for the next Friday Drama, following 어느날 갑자기 (One Day, Suddenly). Kim Mi-Sook from 말아톤 (Marathon) will star alongside Lee Cheong-Ah of 늑대의 유혹 (Romance of Their Own) in 나두야 간다 (I'm Going Too). The show, written by Ha Cheong-Wook and produced by Kim Kyung-Ho, stars Kim as a 38 year old student who enrolls in college later than most people, and happens to meet a very familiar schoolmate: her daughter, played by Lee. Kim Kyung-Ho worked as assistant producer on Historical Dramas like 패션 70s (Fashion Seventies) and 서동요 (The Ballad of Seo Dong), so it'll be interesting to see how he adapts to the Friday Drama format, which is more about love affairs and Shinpa tropes, stereotypes which this Drama will try to change. The show begins airing at the end of April.

Now entering the final fourth of its first season, MBC's 궁 (Princess Hours) is attracting interest for its second season, which should be shown in early 2007. Some of this interest comes naturally from the popularity the show is currently enjoying, but also by the fact on Season 2 there won't be an original manhwa to adapt, so writers will either have to go in another direction, or repeat similar situations from Season 1. Bae Jong-Byung from 8Pics commented that a second season of 'Princess Hours' would benefit both them and MBC, and both agree it would be a good idea to do it. But there's really no guarantee they'll make a Season 2 yet. The only thing they're worrying about now is concluding the current Drama on a high note. Now this could just be milking the cow even more, as the hordes of teenagers watching the show will surely demand for more, but he's got a point. They'll have to work out a new outline, and get all the actors back -- which is not as easy as it seems, especially in Korea -- on top of all the organizational problems. Although they've been talking about it, no official announcement has been made. The show, whose 19th and 20th Episode will air middle this week, has been getting closer and closer to the 30% mark, which has now become the target for hit Dramas.

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TV DRAMA WRAPUP
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With Spring right around the corner, and three weeks of TV Drama Previews taking center stage instead of my usual little weekly rant about the TV Drama world, this time created some space to wrap up the first two months of 2006 on Korean TV. One thing that's instantly clear is TV Stations will have to deal with an exponentially decreasing audience. It's not because of the shows' quality, but of course for the emergence of several other entertainment venues changing the way Koreans spend their free time. Indeed, it's very unlikely those big events, the 국민드라마 (National Drama) of old, will show up too often these days. Last year we had two, MBC's 내 이름은 김삼순 (My Lovely Sam-Soon) and KBS' 장밋빛 인생 (Life in Pink), both recording ratings over or around the 50%. But week by week it's becoming obvious reaching even 40% will be increasingly harder this year. Whereas in the early years of this decade 40% would have been considered the minimum to become a 'big hit', that share is decreasing dramatically, with figures around the 30% last year, and frankly even lower in this 2006. SBS was pretty happy about the ratings of shows like 마이걸 (My Girl) and 서동요 (The Ballad of Seo Dong), which never even touched the 30%, let alone reach the heights of the past. And even though MBC has reasons to be happy about any positive rating, after their disastrous 2005, 궁 (Princess Hours) and its mid 20s ratings sent the station into a frenzy, enough to quickly announce a second season of the now 'hit' Drama. Of course the competition has changed, in the form of Cable and Satellite Channels, DMB, Internet VOD (either legal through the stations' websites, or through illegal downloads), but also the mentality of the stations towards their viewership.

Not much has changed in terms of target demographics for what concerns Daily and Weekend Dramas. We're mostly dealing with shows targeted at the Ajumma crowd, with storylines that rarely deviate from the norm, and similar structures. When it comes to Daily Dramas, KBS has ruled the roost for the last few years, and their latest show 별난여자 별난남자 (The Bizarre Bunch) shows they're not going to step down that position any time soon. A melting pot of talented veterans like Ahn Seok-Hwan and Lee Young-Ha alongside youngsters in severe need of experience like Jung Joon (who's been acting since the mid 90s, but still hasn't shown much fire), Go Ju-Won from 부활 (Rebirth) and newcomer Kim Sung-Eun. The show has been on top for 3 consecutive months now, despite rarely showing anything of note. One of the reasons for its success, with ratings getting closer to the 40% (and since we're moving towards the final part, ratings should go even higher in the coming weeks), might also be young Kim Ah-Joong, who's developing into quite a good actress, and boosts up the cuteness factor tenfold. Same goes for Weekend Dramas like KBS' 슬픔이여 안녕 (Goodbye To Sadness), which concluded on a high note towards the beginning of the year, or the current 'eternal second' 하늘이시여 (Dear Heaven), which will soon conclude. Shows with relatively good writing, with veterans carrying the ball most of the time, but sometimes interesting youngsters popping up and surprising with their improvement (Kim Dong-Wan of Shinhwa being the biggest example, in 'Goodbye To Sadness').

But the shows likely to create more discussions are, as always, Trendy Dramas. We started with a bang and Lee Da-Hae's hilarious turn in 마이걸 (My Girl), who made all the 사기꾼 (conman) girls before her look like amateurs, and did so with megatons of cuteness. The show made fun of many tropes of the genre -- often using them to its advantage -- and allowed the young star's talent to emerge. Of course another possible reason why the show was so popular could be pinned on the newfound popularity of 왕의 남자 (The King and The Clown)'s Lee Joon-Gi, but this shown certainly made a statement. That, if the last few years of impressive showcases weren't enough, Lee Da-Hae is a major talent, and if she plays her cards right a good film debut might send her into stardom. Examples of similar good starts gone wrong are many, from Han Ji-Hye of 낭랑 18세 (Sweet 18) to Jung Da-Bin of 옥탑방 고양이 (The Attic Cat), but Lee is a much better actress than them, so hopefully we'll see some positive developments on those terms. Yet, with 'My Girl' concluding and a lot of different shows competing to find a similar level of popularity, the most unlikely of them all became the surprise of 2006: Hwang In-Roi's 궁 (Princess Hours).

Picture this situation: MBC in the pits, with most shows dying a quick death and having a hard time reaching 10% ratings; scandal after scandal popping up, and lots of accidents plaguing productions -- like Han Ji-Min and Moon Jung-Hyuk in 늑대 (Wolf) -- and people complaining left and right about the casting of the show, made up of unexperienced newcomers. A couple of weeks later, and the country is in a 'Princess Hours' craze, at least certain demographics. One of the major complaints regarding Historical Dramas was that there was nothing to enjoy for teenagers on a visceral level; one of the major complaints regarding Trendy Dramas was that there was nothing to enjoy in terms of storytelling for older viewers, with their mix of unrealistic situations, predictable characters and over-the-top emotional shenanigans. So what did PD Hwang, a former director trying his hand at TV Dramas, do? He mixed tropes of the two 'genres', trying to take advantage of their strengths, and mask their shortcomings as much as possible. So we get lavish sets and incredible Art Direction, looking as good and sometimes better than Historical Dramas costing 10 times more. This takes care of people who don't usually touch Trendy Dramas with a ten foot pole. Then, Hwang and writer Lee Eun-Ah took the central formula at the core of Trendy Dramas, that Cinderella Complex so often used on those shows, and made a quirky u-turn: instead of making our 'Prince Charming' assume the role of a Chaebol son, this time Prince Charming is indeed a Prince. Don't know about the charming part, but he's a Prince!

This very simple change might very well be one of the reasons why 'Princess Hours' works. The whole absurdity of the situation -- a Korea still ruled by monarchs using 조선말 (Old Korean), dressing in luxurious Hanbok, engaging in high brow poetic discussion using Hanja and more -- is enough to intrigue viewers; of course that's nothing new if you've ever seen an Historical Drama, but what if that Monarchy exists in the Korea of 2006, next to Lee Hyo-Ri, cell phones with enough useless accessories to make caffelatte with croissants, high speed Internet and all the technology a Joseon commoner couldn't even dream of? So this 'alternate reality' doesn't alienate the younger viewers, who might find all this difficult language curious now, as it's uttered by pretty boys and girls with very little acting skills. And it also intrigues older viewers (myself included), as the script -- adapted from a popular teen manhwa yes, but giving its own spin to the proceedings -- is much smarter than most Trendy Drama fare. And the use of veterans seems like a wink to us 'geezers', especially Kim Hye-Ja's role, who goes from using airy language to cracking up watching 'My Lovely Sam-Soon' on TV like a young girl. And Shim Hye-Jin, Im Ye-Jin, Gang Nam-Gil and all the other older actors, playing along with this seemingly farcical situation with the kind of energy they haven't displayed in years, just make it all more palatable. Of course Yoon Eun-Hye, Joo Ji-Hoon and company would sink this show faster than the Titanic, if it had to be carried by their acting. But we're certainly dealing with someone who knows how to take advantage of their inexperience (all the 'cuteness' is actually charming), and the goofiness of the whole thing is intriguing. Now whether this ends up changing the way Trendy Dramas approach the use of the core format, I can't possibly know. But 'Princess Hours' is definitely unique.

The rest of the Trendy Dramas shown up to March failed to make an impact with viewers even when quality was good, like KBS' 안녕하세요 하느님 (Hello, God!). Also, 2006 might finally be the year when producers will learn Dramas targeted at the Korean Wave public don't do well. SBS' 천국의 나무 (The Tree of Heaven) is dying a miserable death, and although Yoon Seok-Ho's 봄의 왈츠 (Spring Waltz) just started and it could get better, 11% is not exactly a promising rating. If anything this downward spiral Trendy Dramas are facing, after a half decade of domination, shows that teenagers don't watch as much TV as they used to, or at least don't do it when TV Dramas are on. Unless you're a teenager, this can only mean good things for Korean TV Dramas fans, because the over-reliance on trite and predictable plots has been the fatal flaw of one too many Dramas in the past few years. Another trend slowly emerging is that of shows using the SBS Friday Drama format and scoring big with viewers. Competing with KBS' 부부클리닉 (Couple's Clinic), which is not exactly a TV Drama but involves acting, these SBS shows use similar plots (usually about adultery) and through good acting and realistic situations are finding an increasingly larger audience, despite the deja vu feeling. 그 여자 (That Woman) did extremely well, and the new Friday Drama with Sung Hyun-Ah and Song Seon-Mi 어느날 갑자기 (One Day, Suddenly) seems to be pretty good so far.

Big writers like Kim Soo-Hyun and Noh Hee-Kyung finally got back in the game. Kim's 사랑과 야망 (Love & Ambition), a remake of a classic from the 80s, is doing OK in the ratings, but considering the PD/writer couple which made the 86 MBC show so popular got back together, one realistically expects a little more than 15%. But the biggest problem the show might be suffering is average acting, which can't take advantage of the usual top notch work by veteran writer Kim. The opposite is true for Noh Hee-Kyung's 굿바이 솔로 (Goodbye Solo), which started extremely well (20%+) because of a combination of good luck and schedule changes, reverted back to its predicted early 10s spot. But the show is certainly vintage Noh Hee-Kyung, with excellent acting -- and, shocking as it might sound, Kim Min-Hee is not that grating -- in what seems to be a mix of the Magnolia -- or 내 생애 가장 아름다운 일주일 (All For Love) format with Noh's usually strong characters. Although it's still very early to judge how things will turn out, 'Goodbye Solo' already looks to be one of the highlights of the year.

Last but not least, Historical Dramas. With KBS spending the beginning of the year showing a Chinese Drama about Genghis Khan, there was a lot of anticipation regarding their return to the Sageuk world, with Jung Sung-Hee's 서울 1945 (Seoul 1945). But both ratings and quality are severely lacking. Or better, severely underwhelming. From the writer of last year's excellent 패션 70s (Fashion Seventies), 'Seoul 1945' seems to have all the cards to work well, including a very controversial period of Korean history, good writing, nice production values and decent acting. But it all feels so vanilla, it's hard to be excited about the remaining episodes. Things are a little different when it comes to Lee Byung-Hoon's 서동요 (The Ballad of Seo Dong). The show, which is a few episodes away from passing the ball to Gam Woo-Sung and Son Ye-Jin's 연애시대 (Alone in Love), might very well be Lee's worst in over a decade, but it's still a very exciting, well produced Drama. If anything, the fact it took so long to set things on fire might ruin its chances in the International market. Acting has improved quite a bit, even concerning Jo Hyun-Jae and Ryu Jin, and although there's still a few problems plaguing the show, compared to Lee's older works, 'Seo Dong' has become a very enjoyable show.

The best show of the year still remains MBC's fantastic Historical Drama 신돈 (Shin Don), which might not be as intriguing historically and culturally as KBS' Goryeo shows like 왕건 (Wang Gun), but it's much better acted, produced, and feels even more meaningful. If anything, the acting of young Seo Ji-Hye shows the 'Whispering Corridors' series keeps turning out talented young stars, as last year's 여고괴담 4: 목소리 (Voice) gave use Seo and the extremely talented Kim Ok-Bin, two youngsters to look out for in the coming years. Son Chang-Min's central performance confirms he's one of the most underrated actors in Korea, and although it has no chance of repeating the success of older MBC Historical Dramas (lack of stars the biggest problem), 'Shin Don' is their best effort since 다모 (Damo). But of course if the upcoming Goguryeo Dramas on the three stations end up changing that, I certainly won't complain. 2006 looks to be a very exciting year for Sageuk fans, and we'll try to talk in depth about all of them, up until November's 태왕사신기 (The Great King) and its mammoth cast.

2006 has been a weird year, full of changes and unpredictable outcomes, and although we're still a little lacking compared to 2005, the next few months should change that. And hopefully we'll find another 부활 (Rebirth) this year too.

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TV DRAMA RATINGS
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03/06~03/12

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01. 35.3% 별난여자 별난남자 (The Bizarre Bunch)
Daily Drama - KBS1 [Cast: Jung Joon, Kim Ah-Joong, Go Ju-Won, Kim Hae-Sook, Ahn Seok-Hwan]
Official Website
PD: Lee Deok-Geon
WRITER: Lee Deok-Jae

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02. 34.6% 하늘이시여 (Dear Heaven)
Weekend Drama - SBS [Cast: Yoon Jung-Hee, Lee Tae-Gon, Lee Bo-Hee, Jo Yeon-Woo, Wang Bit-Na]
Official Website
PD: Lee Young-Hee
WRITER: Im Sung-Han

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03. 26.7% 서동요 (The Ballad of Seo Dong)
Historical Drama - SBS [Cast: Lee Bo-Young, Jo Hyun-Jae, Ryu Jin, Jeon Sung-Kyung, Heo Young-Ran]
Official Website
PD: Lee Byung-Hoon
WRITER: Kim Young-Hyun

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04. 26.6% 궁 (Princess Hours)
Wed/Thu Drama - MBC [Cast: Yoon Eun-Hye, Song Ji-Hyo, Joo Ji-Hoon, Kim Hye-Ja, Kim Hyung-Joong]
Official Website
PD: Hwang In-Roi
WRITER: Lee Eun-Ah

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05. 20.7% 결혼합시다 (Let's Get Married)
Weekend Drama - MBC [Cast: Yoon Da-Hoon, Kang Sung-Yeon, Lee So-Yeon, Ju Hyeon, Bae Soo-Bin]
Official Website
PD: Choi Yi-Seop
WRITER: Kim Ji-Eun, Kim Nam-Kyung

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06. 19.7% 인생이여 고마워요 (Thank You Life)
Weekend Drama - KBS2 [Cast: Yoo Ho-Jung, Park Ye-Jin, Oh Ji-Ho, Kim Yoo-Seok, Kim Yoon-Seok]
Official Website
PD: Kim Sung-Geun
WRITER: Park Eun-Ryeong

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07. 19.6% 고향역 (A Place Called Home)
Daily Drama - KBS1 [Cast: Song Ok-Sook, Park Hyung-Jae, Kim Cheol-Gi, Jeon Ye-Seo, Oh Soo-Min]
Official Website
PD: Shin Hyun-Soo
WRITER: Lee Hong-Gu

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08. 15.3% 서울 1945 (Seoul 1945)
Historical Drama - KBS1 [Cast: Han Eun-Jung, So Yoo-Jin, Ryu Soo-Young, Kim Ho-Jin, Go Doo-Shim]
Official Website
PD: Yoon Chang-Beom
WRITER: Jung Sung-Hee

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09. 15.0% 사랑과 야망 (Love and Ambition)
Weekend Drama - SBS [Cast: Han Go-Eun, Jo Min-Gi, Lee Hoon, Lee Min-Young, Chu Sang-Mi]
Official Website
PD: Kwak Young-Beom
WRITER: Kim Soo-Hyun

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10. 14.5% 신돈 (Shin Don)
Historical Drama - MBC [Cast: Son Chang-Min, Seo Ji-Hye, Jung Bo-Seok, Lee Dae-Yeon, Kim Hye-Ri]
Official Website
PD: Kim Jin-Min
WRITER: Jung Ha-Yeon

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11. 14.2% 걱정하지마 (Don't Worry)
Daily Morning Drama - KBS2 [Cast: Yoon Da-Hoon, Lee Young-Eun, Kim Sung-Ryeong, Bang Eun-Hee, Lee Seung-Shin]
Official Website
PD: Han Jung-Hee
WRITER: Kim Sa-Kyung

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12. 13.9% 사랑하고 싶다 (I Want To Love)
Daily Morning Drama - SBS [Cast: Kim Byung-Se, Shin So-Mi, Lee Eung-Kyung, Kim Ji-Seok, Sung Dong-Il]
Official Website
PD: Park Hyung-Gi
WRITER: Yoo Hyun-Mi

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13. 13.9% 어느날 갑자기 (One Day, Suddenly)
Friday Drama - SBS [Cast: Sung Hyun-Ah, Lee Jong-Won, Song Seon-Mi, Yoon Sung-Hoon, Kim Il-Woo]
Official Website
PD: Park Young-Soo
WRITER: Park Hyun-Joo

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14. 11.9% 굿바이 솔로 (Goodbye Solo)
Wed/Thu Drama - KBS2 [Cast: Cheon Jung-Myung, Yoon So-Yi, Bae Jong-Ok, Lee Jae-Ryong, Kim Min-Hee]
Official Website
PD: Gi Min-Soo
WRITER: Noh Hee-Kyung

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15. 11.5% 봄의 왈츠 (Spring Waltz)
Mon/Tue Drama - KBS2 [Cast: Han Hyo-Joo, Seo Do-Young, Daniel Henney, Lee So-Yeon, Jung Dong-Hwan]
Official Website
PD: Yoon Seok-Ho
WRITER: Kim Ji-Yeon, Hwang Da-Eun

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THE TOP RATED DRAMAS OF 2006
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01/01~03/12

01. 37.5% 별난여자 별난남자 (The Bizarre Bunch) - KBS [Now Showing]
02. 34.6% 하늘이시여 (Dear Heaven) - SBS [Now Showing]
03. 31.9% 슬픔이여 안녕 (Goodbye To Sadness) - KBS [Concluded - Review Coming Soon]
04. 27.9% 궁 (Princess Hours) - MBC [Now Showing - Review Coming Soon]
05. 26.7% 서동요 (The Ballad of Seo Dong) - SBS [Now Showing - Review Coming Soon]
06. 24.9% 마이걸 (My Girl) - SBS [Concluded - Review Coming Soon]
07. 23.7% 그여자 (That Woman) - SBS [Concluded - Review Coming Soon]
08. 23.0% 황금사과 (Golden Apple) - KBS [Concluded - Review Coming Soon]
09. 22.3% 인생이여 고마워요 (Thank You Life) - KBS [Now Showing]
10. 21.3% 결혼합시다 (Let's Get Married) - MBC [Now Showing]
11. 21.1% 들꽃 (Wild Flower) - SBS [Concluded]
12. 20.3% 고향역 (A Place Called Home) - KBS [Now Showing]
13. 20.1% 굿바이 솔로 (Goodbye Solo) - KBS [Now Showing]
14. 17.7% 사랑과 야망 (Love and Ambition) - SBS [Now Showing]
15. 17.7% 서울 1945 (Seoul 1945) - KBS [Now Showing]

Sources
Star News: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Yahoo Korea: 1, 2
Yonhap News: 1
Sport Today: 1