Celebrity

3 reasons why recent K-dramas suffer from ratings decline: outdated script, controversial acting

Newly-released K-dramas seem to be losing heat compared to series broadcasted earlier in the year.

Unlike the intense competition that happened in February 2022 with multiple hit series like “Twenty Five, Twenty One”, “A Business Proposal”, “Thirty Nine”, and more, newer series seem to fall behind in terms of both ratings and hype. According to netizens, they no longer anticipate the new episodes as before. So, what exactly causes this decline? 

Controversial acting of the male lead

K-drama male leads are the major reasons why many people watch their favorite shows, and the male leads in newer K-dramas seem to be rather lackluster. 

A prime example is Kim Young Dae in “Shooting Stars” – a series which opened at a 1.6% viewership that’s decreasing over time. Kim Young Dae received mixed reactions for his acting since previous series, and while the actor has improved for his first major role, it is simply not enough. Compared to the more experienced Lee Sung Kyung, Lee Young Dae is said to be stiff and struggling to feel the chemistry. 

Another case is SF9’s Rowoon in “Tomorrow”. Despite being the male lead, the idol-actor does not manage to please the audience of the shows, who find themselves more drawn to actor Lee Soo Hyuk, despite this actor having next to no screen time. 

Outdated script with slow pacing

There are already various series that try to unveil the behinds of the Korean showbiz, so with nothing new to bring to the table, “Shooting Stars” quickly lose the interest of K-drama viewers. 

shooting-stars
K-dramas about showbiz are no longer catchy enough to draw in audiences. 

In addition, recent K-dramas often have super slow paces and light-hearted story-telling, which quickly bore fans who are more into quick and drama-filled series. This can be found in many series, including “Shooting Stars”,  “Love All Play”, “My Liberation Notes”, and more. 

Messy storyline

The star-studded K-drama “Our Blues”, which is written by the legendary screenwriter No Hee Kyung, is also not doing well on the drama scene. In particular, netizens are sending a lot of criticism towards the series for having a plot unworthy of its stellar cast. As an omnibus series, “Our Blues” has a lot of different story lines, with different episodes focusing on different characters, and some common grounds to connect them all. However, many audiences find this kind of story-telling distracting, and often struggle to follow the events of the series. In addition, they also express that sudden changes in plotline makes it hard to adjust, and their feelings haven’t reached the climax before the story switches to something else. 

Therefore, despite scoring ratings higher than the rest, “Our Blues” is unable to repeat the hype that followed early 2022 K-dramas. 

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