A new K-drama series starring veteran actress Kim Seo Hyung is facing a deep crisis with low popularity and ratings.
Among various newly-released Korean dramas in the past two weeks, not many have been successful in terms of reputation. However, certain works like “Bora! Deborah” and “Queenmaker” have been mentioned among fan communities, or at least achieved success on their distribution platforms, while “Pale Moon” has not been so lucky. Despite this K-drama marking the return of a reliable face in both acting and reputation, actress Kim Seo Hyung, it debuted very quietly.
“Pale Moon” began airing on April 10th with an opening rating of just 0.97%. Its second episode dropped to 9%, and the 3rd episode’s rating increased slightly to 1.056%. These modest numbers may be due to objective reasons, such as the “Pale Moon” being broadcast on a less popular cable channel, or because it is a weekday drama without a prime time slot. However, it is regrettable and puzzling that the drama is also hardly mentioned on social media platforms and the Korean press, to the point that international audiences are almost unaware of its existence. It doesn’t help that “Pale Moon” is not released simultaneously on major OTT platforms, making it almost impossible for non-Korean viewers to access.
In fact, “Pale Moon” is not at all a bad project, even boasting a fairly fresh script and a highly reputable cast. In addition to Kim Seo Hyung, the drama also stars Seo Young Hee and Yoo Sun, who are both familiar faces on the Korean big screen. At the same time, the male lead is played by Lee Si Woo, who has reliable acting.
On the other hand, “Pale Moon” is adapted from a Japanese novel of the same name, which is written by Mitsuyo Kakuta. The drama revolves around female lead Yoo Yi Hwa (Kim Seo Hyung), who has an incredibly affluent life thanks to her wealthy husband. However, she feels suffocated by this life and disregarded by her husband, and thus decides to work as a contract employee at a bank. Gradually, she regains her confidence through her new job.
However, her life becomes irreversibly changed when she begins to embezzle money from VIP customers and meets a young man much younger than herself. Notably, “Pale Moon” is rated 18+ with warnings for violence and vulgar language, so perhaps the upcoming journey of Yi Hwa’s character will be extremely dramatic, even heavy.
Source: k14
